


Somewhere Only We Know

by meggidarling



Series: Like Real People Do (Library! AU) [2]
Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Library, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Dialogue Heavy, Fluff, Holidays, M/M, Multi, Secret Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-25
Updated: 2018-12-25
Packaged: 2019-09-26 19:48:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,402
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17148020
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/meggidarling/pseuds/meggidarling
Summary: Jester Lavorre was nothing if not persistent. If she had a goal, nothing would stop her from achieving it.Nothing.Not even a stubbornly shy human who refused all her attempts to find him a lover.She’s been trying to force him out of his comfort zone since he started working at the local library. She’d try to play matchmaker, though he never took her up on the attempts. He didn’t need her help.Not that that stopped her at all.





	Somewhere Only We Know

**Author's Note:**

> Some background that isn't really relevant but I wanted to include anyway, as I'm making this into a series in the near future!  
> \- All of the Mighty Nein (including the guests and excluding Caduceus and Molly) work at a library, and their jobs will be explained in future works  
> \- Molly is nonbinary, using they/them pronouns  
> \- It's not really discussed in this work, but Molly is a makeup artist and model, dabbling in youtube and other social media platforms and Caduceus runs a tea shop/second-hand shop.  
> \- Magic exists, but will probably not be discussed frequently.  
> -Winter's Crest is just a flimsy cover for Christmas in this fic. 
> 
> Enjoy!

Jester Lavorre was nothing if not persistent. If she had a goal, nothing would stop her from achieving it. 

Nothing.

Not even a stubbornly shy human who refused all her attempts to find him a lover. 

She’s been trying to force him out of his comfort zone since he started working at the local library. She’d try to play matchmaker, though he never took her up on the attempts. He didn’t need her help.

Not that that stopped her at all.   
~*~  
“Cayyyyylebbb!” Jester said, skipping into the research librarian’s office. “I have an idea-”

“I will not go on a date with any of your friends, Jester. Particularly if all of your friends also work in this library.” Caleb said, not looking up from his book. He still didn’t understand how someone as loud and as colorful as Jester worked in a library, but her sweets did save the café, so perhaps he shouldn’t complain.

“But Caleb!” Jester whined, plopping herself down in the chair next to his desk. “You have to get out more! Look at your office! It’s so plain! Even Yasha has more picture in hers, and she’s only here part-time!”

Jester wasn’t wrong. Caleb’s office was fairly plain. He had a framed photo on the wall of him and the whole library staff, a present from Jester, along with his diploma on the opposite wall, next to a clock that was too damn loud. His desk was cluttered though it was mostly a mess of papers and books. The only ‘personal touch’ was a knitted orange cat made to look like Frumpkin from Nott and a cactus. 

Caleb let out a sigh, and turned to Jester, the blue tiefling already giving him her best puppy dog eyes. Caleb was glad she cared, but gods, he was too tired for her constant pushing. 

“I appreciate it, Jester, I do. But none of the people you have tried to set me up with has gone well.” Caleb said, as gently as possible, though his patience was growing ever thin.

“That’s not true!” Jester said though he could tell she didn’t really believe it either. 

“Jester, name one that worked out.” 

“Well, maybe it’s because you refused to even go out with them!” 

Caleb huffed out a laugh. “Jester, one of the people you tried to set me up with was a lesbian-”

“I didn’t know Beau was gay at that point!” 

Caleb gave her a skeptical look but continued with his point. “The second was Yasha, which is a clear mistake, as she scared the fuck out of me at that point. Fjord was the third, and that was a mistake because you are in love with him-”

“Lies and slander!”

“I’m okay, Jester. I’m happy without going on the dates you’re trying to get me on.” Caleb assured her, taking her hand in his. “I know you mean well, but I’m okay.”

Jester deflated, though she didn’t pull away. “Okay, Caleb. If you’re sure. I just don’t want you to be as lost as you were last year. That was scary.”

Caleb winced slightly, remember the man he when he first came to work at the library. That version of Caleb didn’t eat or bathe, kept to himself, and barely left the house. That Caleb allowed guilt to eat him away inside, but never asked for help. 

“I’m doing okay, Jester. I’m still going to therapy and I have Frumpkin now.” Caleb smiled, squeezing her hand. “Now come on, let’s talk about something fun.”

Jester instantly brightened up. “My Winter’s Crest party is tomorrow! You’ll be there, won’t you?” 

Caleb nodded. “Ja, of course, I’ll be there, Jester.”

“Feel free to bring people with you, or something. We’re going to have way too much food and stuff. I messed up the numbers and ordered enough for 25 instead of 10.” Jester said, standing up and dusting off her dress. “See you later, Caleb!” She kissed the top of his head before scurrying out of the office. 

Caleb let out a long breath before slamming his head down on the desk. Gods, he adored Jester, but she could suck the energy out of him sometimes.

“She tried to set you up again?” A quiet voice asked from the doorway, nearly scaring him out of his skin.

“Scheisse, Yasha!” He exclaimed, clutching his chest. “Must you do that sneaking thing? You’re far too tall to be that quiet all the time.”

Yasha shrugged, her two-toned braids moving with her. “Sorry. Did she?”

Caleb sighed again. “Yes.”

“You could just tell her, there’s no point in hiding it anymore.” She took a long sip of her tea (which was in an adorable mug covered in storm clouds and little lightning bolts). “You’re not ashamed, are you?” 

Though her words sounded judgmental, her tone, and how well he knew her, said otherwise. She was genuinely curious and wanted to help him.

“No, not anymore. I don’t know. I think I just like the idea of something good in my life being completely mine.”

Yasha nodded. “I get it, but I don’t think letting your friends in on your secret will suddenly ruin it. In fact, I think it will make it better.”

“Perhaps you’re right. You’re very wise, friend.” Caleb said, adjusting his glasses. 

“Perhaps I am.” She replied. “Now go the hell home, you’ve been here for at least ten hours and that’s far too many. Go get some sleep. Tomorrow is going to be a long, people-filled party. Maybe think about bringing Frumpkin with you so you don’t get too overwhelmed, okay?

“Ja, okay,” Caleb said, standing up and gathering his stuff from around the office. “I’ll see you tomorrow?” 

Yasha bobbed her head, then retreated into her office as quietly as she had come. 

When he was done packing up, he ran to the café. Nott was the alone behind the counter, her little goblin ears the only thing visible. Beau and Calianna were sitting at one of the small, circular tables. Cali was flicking through a magazine, chirping happily about Jester’s party. Beau was perched on her chair, one foot on the seat, allowing her to rest her head on her knee while she did her best to follow Cali’s rapid speech. 

“Hallo, Calianna. Hallo, Beauregard.” He said. “Nott, leibling, are you ready to go?”

His friend popped her head up from behind the counter. “Caleb! Just about. I’m just packing you up some of the extra pastries. I know that you love the strawberry Danish and the blueberry yogurt muffins, so I tried to give you a little of each.” 

She grabbed the box of treats and scurried over to him. “C’mon! If we don’t leave soon, we might hit traffic.” She exclaimed before taking off in the direction of the car, forcing Caleb to run after her, nodding at the others as he went.

“Are you excited for Jester’s party? I know you don’t really like parties and crowds usually, but it shouldn’t be too many people.” Nott babbled as they drove in the direction of her flat. “You promise you’ll tell me if you get overwhelmed?”

“Ja, of course,” Caleb said, and for once he felt like he actually meant it. 

“Are you bringing anyone with you?” Nott said, a little smirk on pulling at her mouth and her eyebrows wiggling. “Anyone special?” 

“We’ll see.” 

~*~ Jester ~*~

When Jester’s doorbell rang at exactly seven, she knew it had to be Caleb. He was the only person showed up exactly on time, no matter what. She threw open the door, putting her foot out to stop Nugget from running out into the street. 

“Caylebbbb!!” She said happily, pulling the man inside. 

He had actually dressed up for the party, wearing a brown turtleneck and nice black jeans under his usual brown coat. He had an orange scarf tied around his neck.

“You didn’t bring Frumpkin?” Jester said, giving him a worried look. “Are you going to be okay without him?” 

Caleb nodded. “I believe so, ja. Do you need any help setting up?”

Jester grinned, dragging her friend to the back of the house. “Caleb, I thought you’d never ask!” 

People steadily filtered in after Caleb. Fjord let himself in a few minutes later, the catering in his hands. Nila arrived next, her husband at her side, her baby boy on her hip and a huge smile on her face. Yasha was next, Nott and Beau trailing behind her. Cali and Keg were last, arriving together in a flurry of smells; Cali’s floral perfume and Keg’s cigarette smoke.  
When everyone she was expecting arrived, Jester made an announcement. 

“Hello everyone!” She cheered. “Happy Winter’s Crest! Thank you all for coming, it means the world to me. Food is in the dining room, drinks are scattered around. Please make yourself at home and have fun!” 

It was a bit of a surprise when the doorbell rang, but Jester assumed that maybe some of her friends who canceled, like Shakäste or Pumat, changed their mind. Jester rushed to open it, jumping over the couch, which earned her an annoyed sound from Beau, who was nursing a beer and gawking at Yasha. That didn’t stop the tiefling. She merely stuck her tongue out and kept moving, throwing open the door quickly. She paused, however, because she didn’t recognize the people at the door. 

The first was a firbolg with gray fur. He had to be at least seven feet tall. He had kind, purple eyes and absolutely gorgeous pastel pink hair, half of it shaved close to his head. His nose and cheeks were smattered with freckles, a constellation of brown on his gray skin. He was dressed in light, summery clothes in teals and tans and it made Jester wonder how he wasn’t freezing to death. He gave her an easy smile.

His companion was a fellow tiefling who was even more colorful than Jester, a feat she didn’t know was possible. Their skin was purple and covered in tattoos. There were peacock feathers on one side of their face and neck. A snake’s head was peeking out from underneath their ridiculous jacket. They had immaculate makeup on, glittering golds and silvers to match the jewelry dripping off their horns and ears. The colors also spread to their clothing. Their jacket was one of the oddest things she had ever seen. It was the same red as their eyes, with designs embroidered in every color imaginable. Under the loud outerwear, they wore black ripped jeans and a bedazzled black crop top. 

“Ummmmm,” Jester said, looking at the pair for a few more moments before stepping aside and letting them come in. “Who are you two?” 

“You must be Ms. Jester. We’ve heard so much about you.” The firbolg said, his voice deep and slow. He looked around the room, a dopey smile on his face. “This is nice.”

“Mollymauk Tealeaf, Molly to my friends, at your service.” The tiefling said, bowing with a flourish, careful not to drop the boxes they were holding. “We’re here for-”  
“Molly! Caddy!” Caleb shouted from across the room.

He ran to them, clearly at least a little bit tipsy. 

Molly smiled even wider when Caleb came into their view. “Mr. Caleb! Did you start drinking without us, darling?”

Caleb nodded, pulling Molly in for a gentle kiss before moving to the firbolg. As if they practiced the move before, he immediately bent down, allowing Caleb to press a matching kiss to his lips as well. 

“Hiya, sunflower. You enjoying the party so far?” 

Caleb grinned, a relaxed expression the Jester had never seen before. “Ja, but I am very glad you are here.”

“We saw you when you left the house an hour ago, Caleb.” Molly chided, though they themselves were giggling. “Now, aren’t you going to introduce us to your friends?”

Caleb blushed, looking back at the nearly silent room, the only sound coming from Nila’s cooing baby. “Caduceus, Molly, this is everyone. Everyone, this is Caduceus and Molly, my significant others.”

There were a few beats of silence before all hell broke loose.

“WHAT?!” Jester shrieked, much to the displeasure of everyone in the room. “Caleb, I’ve been trying to step you up for months! Why didn’t you tell me?” 

Caleb suddenly looked more sober and slightly anxious. “Ich- I don’t really know. They were just such a pure and beautiful part of my life- not that I thought any of you would ruin it! I just wanted it to be mine-ours” He motioned to Caduceus and Molly. “for as long as possible.” 

He looked so worried that he had disappointed her that Jester couldn’t be mad, even though she wasn’t really to begin with, mostly just confused. “Oh, Caleb! That’s the sweetest thing I’ve ever heard!” She squealed, throwing her arms around his shoulders. “Did anybody else know?” 

“I did!” Nott said, going to hug Molly and Caduceus. “But that was mostly an accident.” She shivered. “The things this goblin has seen.”

Caduceus chuckled and patted Nott’s head. “Sorry about that, Nott.”

“I knew as well,” Yasha said from her spot on the couch (which was far too short for her long legs).

“Yasha, there you are, darling!” Molly exclaimed, moving to lay themself across the tall woman’s lap. “I missed you, my dear!”

“I missed you too, Molls.” Yasha said, gently petting Molly’s curly purple hair. 

“Yasha!” Jester said. “You knew Caleb’s super attractive significant others?”

Caleb blushed but didn’t say anything, simply tucking himself further into Caduceus’ side. 

“Yasha is practically my sister!” Molly replied, moving back to their partners’ sides. “We’ve known each other forever.”

“How come we’ve never heard about you?” Beau asked gruffly, taking a swig of her beer.

“How much can you honestly say you know about Yasha?” Molly laughed. “Now, I was promised food?”

Jester, snapping back into her hostess persona, nodded wildly. “Yeah! Let’s eat everyone!” 

The rest of the room filtered into the dining room, but Caleb, Caduceus, and Molly stayed behind. 

“I’m proud of you, Firefly.” Caduceus said, pressing a kiss to Caleb’s hair. 

“Same here.” Molly pressed a kiss to Caleb’s temple. “And now we get to kiss you whenever we want.”

“Within reason, Lavender.” Caduceus chided gently when he saw Caleb’s cheeks heat up. 

“Sureeeee.” Molly said, before tugging their boyfriends into the kitchen. “Now come on, I’m hungry!”

**Author's Note:**

> I'm back! 
> 
> I've missed writing so much! I'm not sure if I love how this turned out but I'm still proud of it after not writing for a couple of months. Plus, this is my first venture into the Critical Role Fandom, so I'm still getting the characters right. 
> 
> That being said, I know some of you may be subscribed for Arrowverse content but unfortunately, that is unlikely to be posted here again. The only thing I might write is the rest of 'Life Long Enough to Be Someone Else,' but even that is unlikely. 
> 
> My life has been consumed by Critical Role, so I hope people will enjoy my contributions to the fandom!


End file.
